Kirking Recipient of 2012 Parker Award

Dec 07, 2012

Duane M. Kirking, R#42 in the UK HealthCare Residency Program and a longtime faculty member at the University of Michigan, has been named the 2012 recipient of the Paul F. Parker Award. He received the award at the 2012 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Midyear Meeting in Las Vegas.

The Paul F. Parker Award is given annually to a past resident of the University of Kentucky Pharmacy Residency Program or to an individual intimately associated with the success of the program. This award recognizes an individual who has displayed sustained contribution to the profession in practice, teaching or research; a commitment to high ideals and excellence in their chosen field; leadership and innovation; and a passion to encourage the personal and professional growth of others.

Dr. Kirking had a distinguished career in pharmacy and public health, having served as a faculty member for 28 years at the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy and School of Public Health. While at Michigan, he served as department chair and graduate program director, and developed and directed a Center for Medication Use Policy and Economics. Upon his retirement, the University of Michigan named Dr. Kirking as a Professor Emeritus of Social and Administrative Sciences and a Research Scientist Emeritus of Health Management and Policy. He has trained and mentored numerous pharmacists and graduate students who have gone on to have distinguished careers in pharmacy practice, academia, the pharmaceutical industry, and other areas. Through his joint appointment in the School of Public Health he advanced the principles of appropriate medication use and innovative pharmacy practice to future health care administrators.

Dr. Kirking has made a sustained and substantial contribution to research throughout his career. His research interests have encompassed assessment of the quality of medication use, drug utilization review, consumer satisfaction, accessibility and availability of generic drugs, evaluation of innovative pharmacy programs and medication use outcomes in asthma, hormone replacement therapy, and HIV. His contribution to pharmacy-related research was recognized by the American Pharmacists Association when Dr. Kirking was given its Research Achievement Award in the Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2003, an award given in his discipline only once every three years.

Among Dr. Kirkingís professional activities in pharmacy and public health is his 22 years of volunteer service to the United States Pharmacopeia. He was elected to USPís Board of Trustees in 2005 and has served as Chairman of the Board since 2008.

Dr. Kirking earned a BS in Pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a PharmD from the University of Kentucky. He also received a Masterís degree in Public Administration and a PhD in Social and Administrative Sciences in Pharmacy from the Ohio State University.